Global Social Venture Competition

Become a Mentor

Mentoring is a key part of the success of the Global Social Venture Competition. The goal of the mentoring program is to facilitate working relationships between entrants and venture capitalists, academics and other professionals with relevant business or social venture expertise. In the past, mentors have assisted teams with writing the business plan, calculating social return on investment and presenting ideas to potential investors. Best efforts are made to match teams with mentors whose industry experience and skills compliment those of the team and its business plan. In addition to working with aspiring social entrepreneurs, mentors also have the opportunity to network with other professionals involved in the competition, including other mentors and judges.

Mentors are matched with entrant teams that advance past the Executive Summary round of the competition. Mentors work with these teams from early February to mid-March, (perhaps longer for teams that advance to the finals). Mentors have committed their time to assisting entrants during this period. Additionally, mentors are encouraged to continue working with the team beyond the competition.

Specific Mentor Roles and Responsibilities:

• Dedicate approximately 5-10 hours to working with the team in the development of an initial business plan, through the regional semi-finals.
• Be considerate of the deadlines imposed on the entrants by the competition; they will be relying on your feedback to complete the business plan.
• Review the final version of the business plan in its entirety with sufficient time to allow entrants to make appropriate changes before submission.
• Attend the GSVC Mentor Mixer on to meet with your team and other mentors, if possible.

Specific Entrant Roles and Responsibilities:

• Give thoughtful consideration to all mentor suggestions and comments and proactively communicate when and why ideas or suggestions are not incorporated into the final business plan.
• Show respect for the mentor's time by screening and prioritizing requests for information or feedback and accommodating their schedules as much as possible.
• Attend the Mentor Mixer to meet your mentor and other participants, if possible. 

If you interested in being considered as a potential GSVC Mentor please email us at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)